Don't Cry, My Love

The Impressions: Don't Cry My Love
From The Versatile Impressions (ABC, 1969)

I've been a fan of Curtis Mayfield for just about as long as I've been a fan of music. A lot soul music seems to have a universal appeal to it, and Mayfield's music exemplifies the ability to speak to an extremely wide range of people in relatively basic terms.
"Don't Cry, My Love" tells the story of a soldier consoling the wife he is leaving behind to fight in an ambiguous war. The song's release date of 1969 easily associates it with the anti-Vietnam songs of the time, but unlike many of its contemporary protest anthems, "Don't Cry" leaves room for positive identification with the soldier, and even the war. The lyrics of the song could just as easily apply to the civil rights struggle going on at the same time. It is one of the rare topical songs which leaves room for application on both sides of a wide variety of duscussions.
All cultural and political significance aside, it is an impossibly beautiful song. The vocals demonstrate a simultaneous strength and fragility which eclipse the lyrics in sheer range of communicative ability. This is music of the highest caliber.